


redemption

by orphan_account



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Platonic Relationships, Redemption, adding more tags as I go along, bless all the people who have already written fanfics, but super light, i'm so sorry i just really crave infinite/gadget content ok, implied Sonamy, platonic sonic/gadget
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2018-02-16
Packaged: 2019-02-08 09:51:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12862017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Gadget doesn't know how to deal with himself, let alone a serial killer. Well, pretty much.





	1. live and learn

**Author's Note:**

> i'm too deep into this ship help me  
> really slow burn I'M SO SORRY it has to be natural

This wasn't supposed to happen.

 _None_ of this was supposed to happen. None of the-the humiliation, the remarks, the defeat, the end.

 _The end_. He would lay here, alone, starving, bruised, dying. The end.

Infinite closed his eyes. There was an end to him, after all.

* * *

"Maybe we should send reinforcements after you-" Amy's worried voice cut through Gadget's buzzing thoughts, and as he sharply took in a breath, he clung to the walls of the ruined Eggman Empire Fortress. His fingers gripped into it, and willed himself to look up and away from the dizzying ground below. "I should have thought this through!"

"It's alright." Gadget muttered through gritted teeth. "I can manage."

"There's no need for this mission," Amy hurriedly uttered. "You don't  _need_ to do this."

"But I need to know!" He could barely hear himself over the whistle of the wind, and he found that climbing the exterior of the ruins was proving harder by the second. "What if he's still..."

"Alive." Amy's voice was bitter sounding. "If he's alive, bring him back here.  _I'll_ be the one to take care of him." And with that, Gadget's ear piece buzzed, signalling that Amy had cut out.

The thing was, he cared. Somehow, despite everything, he didn't want Infinite to be suffering alone. Neither did Amy. She wanted everyone to be safe - she, she always befriended everyone. Always cared for everyone. Gadget's finger slipped from a crack in the wall, and he cursed, a rope from his glove reaching out to curl around a pole on the top. He pulled. Okay, it was sturdy. Carefully, he continued ascending, trying to distract himself with thoughts of what had happened.

He always had to remind himself to be angry. Angry at Infinite for hurting him, and his friends, and  _Sonic_. Amy felt the same way, too. It was a constant flip flop between being the hero, and hating him for what he had done.

Still, after beating him, Gadget supposed that Infinite would still be sulking and wallowing in self pity.

_If he's still alive._

The wind howled into his large ears, and he sucked in another breath, making his way up. The sun's rays shone brilliantly, illuminating parts of the reflective wreck, and Gadget wondered if there was any robots still functioning inside. His hand gripped onto a piece that stuck out, and he pushed himself up but his foot knocked off block of the building. His heart thumped, but he breathed in deeply, reminding himself of the safety rope and trying  _very_ hard not to watch the block that was tumbling all the way down and clearly, (he winced) landed with a thump and dust curling around it.

His hand suddenly clutched the top, and he sighed loudly in relief, shutting his eyes as he hauled himself up, tail wagging furiously in concentration. He took a quick look around, inspecting the damage they had done from the final battle with the phantom ruby. Half of the floating platforms had crashed to the ground - Gadget supposed that it was because their source of energy had been destroyed. The platforms that were still up must have been running from auxiliary power. Free from the constant climbing, his gloved finger tapped his ear piece and he spoke into the mic. "Amy? I've reached the top." Just static. She did cut off, after all.

Gadget's hand brushed over his burst Wispon, and his eyes darted over his surroundings, taking in the roof.

There was a stack of rubble - a perfect hiding place. And there was the emergency exit in the middle that led down to the inside. There wasn't much on the top, aside from random shards of the death egg robot. Gadget found himself squinting at everything, realising that it was sunset. Not wanting to waste a second longer, he grunted, pushing the rubble over and peering inside. To his dismay, it had nothing inside, so he dangled his legs over the emergency hole, twisting himself to climb down the ladder. He wasn't expecting much in the midst of the internal ruins, but he was surprised to find the many rows of experiments still somewhat intact. Somehow, he had ended up in a different room to the one he and Sonic had destroyed before the final fight. This room also seemed to actually be closed off, and Gadget felt thankful for the fact that it wasn't a platform over a large drop. He dropped to his feet, the  _thump_ echoing in the large, dark room. Ears perking, he stalked in between the containers, peering into them.

Broken shards of the phantom ruby prototypes and the large containers were all that remained of the experiments. Gadget tapped a few of them, a dim glow emanating from inside. Pocketing the shards in his pouch, he continued his stride, tapping his chin thoughtfully. He was sure that Tails would be interested in the results of the experiment; he should probably find all the data - if there was any left over in all the damage. There was nothing else to see here anyway. The computer storing all the information must've been moved, or destroyed-

 _What was that?_ Gadget's pose turned into a battle stance, and he automatically touched his Wispon to check it was there. Quietly, he muttered, "Base, are you in there? I think there's someone in here." It was exciting, and alarming, but most definitely dangerous. He cleared his throat, palms turning sweaty as he waited with bated breath for a response. Yet, nothing. Maybe Amy still hadn't checked back in with him.

Never mind, he could carry on by himself. Backup wasn't  _needed_ after all - he could take out most enemies by himself. And, and, well,  _he_ was weak, and the phantom ruby was no more, and Gadget was perfectly prepared.

He traced the gentle hum, eventually finding a door that was concealed by even more rubble. How had he missed this? As he blinked, his hand reached out to drag away the rubble, but was suddenly engulfed by red cubes. "W-Wait, what-" He yanked his hand back, gasping, checking. The cubes were travelling up his entire arm now. Soon they would engulf his entire body. He had to think fast- or, or...

"Of course you'd come back."

Gadget didn't want to look  _him,_ or,  _it_ in the face.

"Of  _course_ you'd want to finish this all off."

The rumbles of his voice were right next to him. He was right there.

Right there beside him.

Gadget couldn't bring himself to turn around - to see him, to gaze right into that horrifying mask of his.

"Well? Aren't you going to say something? Where did all your bravado go?" He snarled, and Gadget felt a shiver curl down his spine.

His hand ducked into his pouch, and yanked out the shards of the phantom ruby prototypes. Together, the shards produced a brilliant glow, dissipating the cubes that previously had clung onto Gadget's arm. Infinite's shadow moved back, and Gadget let out a sigh of relief, before finally turning around to face him.

He was still the same, aside from the fact that he was  _much_ skinnier and bloodier than before. Still, the way Infinite's golden eye stared at Gadget triumphantly through the mask, Gadget still couldn't help but feel... afraid. Even after everything, here he was, about to flinch in front of the defeated enemy. His eyes stayed trained on Infinite's mask, his fingers playing with the trigger on his Void Wispon. One shot, and it would all be over. He could do this. He could do this.

Gadget swallowed, tossing the used shards to the floor. Infinite's eyes dropped to the ground, and Gadget's arm shot up, pressing and releasing on the trigger. A large purple bubble swallowed Infinite and he was slammed against the wall, letting out a gasp. Moving swiftly to Infinite's right, Gadget fired his Wispon at the ceiling, watching rubble drop around Infinite, trapping him. He was supposed to feel victorious over this, but a sinking feeling settled in Gadget's stomach as he realised that Infinite wasn't struggling to escape.

Infinite had planned this.

He was  _expecting_ this.

Gadget turned around, eyes hungrily inspecting the area, wide in alarm, finger fearfully on the trigger. "Amy! Amy, come in! Base? Base!" Sweat trickled down the lone wolf's head, and he stood still, finally understanding. "You did this."

Even though Gadget couldn't see Infinite's face, he knew that he was smiling.

"What will you do know that you're all on your own?" Cold air drifted into the space, and Gadget looked around in alarm. "No one can save you now."

Gadget's free hand curled into a fist. "Are you planning to freeze us both to death?"

Infinite tilted his head tauntingly. " _I_ will survive. You, on the other hand..."

Gadget wasted no more time in arguing; he snapped his hand up to attach a rope to the ceiling, pulling himself up to the emergency hatch. It was lodged tight, and no matter how hard Gadget slammed his fists and palms against it, it wouldn't budge.

Waltzing into an enemy base like this? Utterly stupid. Not realising that communications had been cut off by the enemy? Idiotic. Idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot...

"You're alone." Infinite crooned, and Gadget hopped down, trying to ignore him. Gadget kicked the wall, once, twice, three times, hoping, praying, wishing for a way out. Wishing that Amy and all his other friends back at the resistance were here.

_Hey..._

He rubbed his chilled hands together, glaring at Infinite who seemed to be lost in thought. He was even starting to hear voices at this point.

"Hey!"

A crash sounded, Infinite's head snapped to eye what was behind Gadget, and Gadget swiveled around to meet face to face with Sonic.

"Need some help?" Sonic took a quick glance around the area, not giving Infinite a second look.

"Yes," Gadget breathed. "Please." He added as an afterthought. Sonic simply nodded, spin-dashing into a clear weakness in the broken Eggman Empire Fortress. It smashed, falling apart to reveal a smaller room that had an intact safety exit.

"It looks like he's activated part of the security system." It took a few seconds for Gadget to realise that Sonic was talking about Infinite. "Ames sent me here after communications got cut off. Reinforcements are coming over too to mop up this place. You okay?" And, it also took Gadget a few seconds to realise that Sonic was talking about  _him_.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Thank you for coming here to save me." For some reason, letting Infinite overhear Gadget's conversation with his hero unsettled him. "What are we... Going to do..."

"With Infinite?" There it was. Out in the open. Somehow, Sonic saying it out loud made Gadget's heart beat even faster than it had before; the fact that they had captured the enemy and were going to decide his punishment very soon. Finally, they had him. "Amy'll decide. And Knuckles. And Tails, too, if he finds anything."

Gadget watched Sonic make his way over to the hole he had created, pointing his thumb to it. The ruby red wolf nodded, following Sonic.

"I'll hold him." Sonic's voice dropped to a whisper.

"No! We should wait for the others to get here..." Gadget protested. "I-I don't want him to hurt you!"

Sonic dropped a hand onto Gadget's shoulder, making the young wolf stand up straight. "We're gonna freeze to death here if we don't get out soon. We have to act quickly." Sonic's words sounded very much like Knuckles - the words were strained with a sense of urgency. Gadget held his ground, shaking his head. It was very strange to defy his hero, but he couldn't allow rash actions to be made.

"As soon as my communications got cut off, you were sent here, right? They should be on their way." Gadget played with his gloves, suddenly unable to look at Sonic. "We can't risk him escaping. We just can't."

Sonic hummed, tapping his foot, pondering. "Well..." He paused, and was about to open his mouth until something (or someone) else landed from the same hole that Sonic had created to save Gadget.

One look at the hammer in the cloud of dust told Gadget who had arrived. He watched Sonic stagger backwards to avoid Amy's typical hug, but was surprised when she wrapped her arms around him instead.

"I'm so sorry," she was choking him, but he didn't mind. "I shouldn't have, you shouldn't..." He awkwardly patted her, glancing to Sonic and not knowing what to say.

"Hey, look, he's fine." Sonic comforted. "But we won't be if we stay around any longer."

Amy finally pulled away, sniffing. She bit her lip, clenching her fists. "Okay. We'll take care of this from here! You guys go on. You deserve to rest."

Sonic gave her a half-smile. "You sure you don't need anything? You've been working at base and out here all day."

She shook her head, regaining her usual beaming face. "I'll be fine. And this time..." She looked back at the troops filing in, multiple pining Infinite down. "We have people to help. For now, go rest. Tails will arrange a meeting soon, though."

Simply nodding and saluting to Amy, Sonic left in a haze of blue. Gadget stared at the spot where Sonic had been, contemplating what to do.

"Gadget," He looked up at the sound of Amy's voice again. She was looking away, frowning. "I forget that you helped save the world... I  _know_ I shouldn't underestimate you, but you still seem like that same scared rookie when you first joined."

"I know." Gadget replied, fixing his glasses. "Thank you for looking out for me."

Amy smiled, and Gadget turned around, making his way out.

* * *

He hadn't fully realised how cold the ruins were until he had slumped on the leather sofa in his apartment. Tails and Amy had insisted they change his apartment to something much bigger, but he preferred the cosy look and how easy it was to maintain.

Gadget sighed, feeling his shoulders droop in exhaustion. It was too late to get a steaming mug of hot chocolate now. He shivered, wrapping himself with a fluffy blanket.

Something was really bothering him, but he didn't know what. The cold? No, despite the fact that he was almost bouncing around from it, it wasn't why he felt so bothered.

Infinite. The fact that he had seen Infinite again was bothering him.

He really,  _really_ wished he could just lock it all up, and never have to think of the war again. He wished that life could go back to the mediocre  _go help out at the shop, attempt to dig up artifacts with countless other people,_ and then  _get a cheese and onion pastry_ and fall asleep peacefully.

Not this; not thinking about that evil golden eye instead of watching the TV.

Gadget jumped at the sound of his communicator ringing. He tapped it, and slid his ear piece from his pocket and into his ear. "Tails?"

"Gadget! We need your input here."

"Me?" Gadget was already snuggled up on his sofa, safe from physical harm. "But I just got back home."

"We need to decide what we're going to do with Infinite."

Gadget jumped up. "I'll be there as soon as possible."

"Okay. See you."

As Gadget strapped on his belt, it dawned on him that even though, at present, he was far away from Infinite, he could never escape the thoughts.


	2. it doesn't matter

Gadget pulled out a chair, scraping it against the polished marble of the new meeting room. Amy had her hands clasped together under her chin, worriedly chewing her lip. Tails was avoiding eye contact with everyone, instead preferring to inspect his shoes, tails moving nervously behind him.

Knuckles was clearly getting more and more frustrated by the second.

Eventually, Knuckles had enough of all the sitting and silence. He slammed his fists down, startling and stunning the room's occupants, and he glared at them all in no particular order.

"Where the hell is that hedgehog?" Knuckles stood up, suddenly pacing the room with his hands behind his back. "We're having an important meeting and he hasn't even bothered to show up! Even the rook- Gadget, even Gadget's here!" He spluttered. 

"Sonic said he'd be away for a while," Amy said in a strained voice. She looked like she was about to pull out her Piko Piko Hammer on Knuckles any minute now. " _So_ , I suggest we commence the meeting without him."

"I agree," Tails spoke up and glanced at Gadget, finally resting his eyes on anything other than his shoes. "Since Sonic's not here and it's an emergency..."

The door snapped open and there stood Sonic, grinning widely. "Yo. Sorry I'm a bit late."

"A  _bit?_ " Knuckles raised his fists, but then dropped them. "Don't you- you're all- so smug- and -  _argh_." He dropped to his seat suddenly, too tired to continue yelling as loudly.

"Hey, don't bust a vein over it," Sonic shrugged, one of his hands hidden behind him. "I found something that'll definitely make you feel better though..."

"If it's anything but a Chaos Emerald, I'll just be more disappointed." Knuckles muttered gruffly.

Sonic whistled. "Woah! That's a big request. I'd almost refuse..." He smirked, pulling out a dazzling red Chaos Emerald. "If I didn't have this on me right now."

This earned a grin from Tails, sighs of relief from both Gadget and Amy, and an eye roll but a slight smile from Knuckles. "Alright. Let's just start this meeting. You got lucky."

"I knew that Sonic wouldn't let us down!" Amy cheered, and Sonic rubbed his nose proudly, taking a seat next to Tails. "Okay! So, after you and Gadget left the fortress, I found some blue prints of Eggman's robots. We also brought back more of the phantom ruby prototype shards to analyse them and compare them with..." She paused, remembering Infinite. "The one we have in here." An uncomfortable silence followed, until Tails spoke up.

"I'll be analysing the energy waves of the phantom ruby. And, it's great that we've got a Chaos Emerald now! I can compare its data to the phantom ruby, and perhaps find the ultimate source of both powers."

"That's great, Tails," Sonic patted Tails' shoulder. "What about Shadow's team?"

"Huh?" Knuckles crossed his arms. "What about them?"

"What are they doing right now?"

"Trying to track down Eggman." Amy piped up. "We've split up into two groups, basically. One group tracks down Infinite, the other tracks down Eggman. Since you haven't been here, we just allocated you as temporary backup."

"Sure was lucky for you I was around earlier today, right Gadget?" Sonic grinned at the quiet wolf, who simply gave him a smile and a nod. "And Team Chaotix?"

"They're trying to reunite families." Amy explained. "Since they're detectives..."

Knuckles coughed loudly, stretching against the back of the chair. "Hey. You're kind of forgetting the point of this meeting."

"Which is...?" It was the first time that Gadget had spoken during the meeting, and all eyes trailed briefly to him.

"What are we going to do with it?"

Gadget's stomach sunk, and he swallowed, realising what, or rather  _who,_ Knuckles was talking about. "Oh. Him. It."

"Yeah." Sonic rested an arm on the table, lowering an eyelid lazily. "I dunno. As long as we stop him from being a threat, I'm fine."

"What?" Amy shook her head, face turning red. "We can't just let him get away with it!"

Sonic closed his eyes. "Do you really think that punishment will work on him?"

Knuckles leaned back further on his chair, brows furrowed in thought. "Ugh."

"You shouldn't do that. You're gonna fall." Sonic warned without opening his eyes. Knuckles opened his mouth to retort, but his eyes widened as he tried to grasp for the table for support. He flailed his hands about, trying to reach for something, anything to hold on to. Then, suddenly, his fall abruptly stopped just before slamming onto the ground. Sonic had opened one eye, his leg outstretched to stop the chair. "Told ya, knucklehead."

Knuckles let out a  _grr_ before scrambling up, glaring at Sonic. "Are you defending it?"

Sonic let out a chuckle. "I help you and you get annoyed."

"Guys..." Tails looked to Sonic, then to Knuckles. "We need to decide on something now. How do we neutralise the threat? And what do we do with it when we remove the threat?"

"Are we talking about the phantom ruby or Infinite?" Gadget's eyes flitted between Tails and Sonic.

"Both." Tails answered immediately. "What should we do, Gadget?"

Gadget swallowed, realising that they were all staring at him and waiting for his answer. "We have to separate the phantom ruby from Infinite."

"Hm." Knuckles huffed, immediately turning to Tails. "You're in charge of that now. Meeting concluded. Everyone is dismissed."

Tails visibly paled, but nodded and swiftly left. Gadget exhaled in relief, and quickly followed, but Sonic and Amy lingered behind.

"Why?" Amy's fists clenched. "Why aren't we doing more?"

"What more is there to do?" Knuckles moved to the door, looking away. "Sonic is right. That thing will probably be able to stand any punishment. All we can do now is control it." And with that, Knuckles left the room, leaving Sonic and Amy alone.

"Sonic..."

"Amy, I'm fine."

Amy shook her head, standing up in sync with Sonic. She walked up to him, looking up into his emerald irises. What was he thinking? What had he been thinking those whole six months? Well... Knowing Sonic, it was either about escaping, kicking robot butt, or his friends.

"You're not."

"I'm not." He admitted.

"Tea and talk?" Amy asked and Sonic grimaced.

"Not now. I'm just... gonna run it off. See you later, Ames."

When he dashed off, Amy still felt the same breeze that he always left behind. The faintest glow of his ghost, and even a hint of the smell of rubber from his shoes. The same carefree smile.

Even after six months he was still himself.

But still, with a hint of pain in his eyes.

* * *

There was something _very_ wrong.

Gadget could feel it all over his body. The sensation and tingling of something being wrong was plaguing him all over. Tail twitching, ears perked, palms sweating. All signs of distress.

Tails looked uneasy, too, but Gadget couldn't pinpoint whether it was because of the feeling, or something else. Nevertheless, he followed Tails to the room where Infinite was being held. As he neared it, he overheard beeps and hums from the various machinery inside. Tails stood in front of the door, and it opened automatically for him, Gadget following close behind.

"He's asleep now..." Tails tapped a luminescent blue screen, beckoning Gadget over. "But the phantom ruby is still active."

Gadget did a quick scan of the room's security system. "What if he tries to escape?"

"He can't." Tails shook his index finger, nodding confidently. "All of this is top-notch technology that I designed. It utilises energy akin to that of the Chaos Emeralds. I'll also attach the Chaos Emerald that Sonic found to power this," he tapped a capsule that was concealed by some sort of black fabric. "And all the other... things we have in this room."

"What's this?" Gadget tried to peer into a cupboard that appeared translucent and contained many strange but familiar shapes, but he couldn't quite work out what they were.

"Oh, something that I'm not supposed to tell you about but it's something that you've used on a pretty much a daily basis."

"Oh." Gadget thought. Something for the resistance. Something that had to be locked up.  _Oh, weaponry, of course._ "Yeah."

"Anyway, if I use the Chaos Emerald, there'll be no chance of him escaping. Hopefully." Tails' ears drooped. "That way, I won't have to-" Tails was cut off by sudden panicked beeping from his machines. Trying to look over Tails' shoulder, Gadget attempted to observe what was going on.

"What's happening?" Gadget watched Tails hurriedly tapping screens, his eyes wide. "Did something happen?"

"I-I don't understand!" Alarmed, Tails flew to the other side of the capsule, tearing off the fabric. "It's... He's waking up!"

Gadget instinctively reached for his Wispon, only to realise that it wasn't there. He grit his teeth, peering into the clouded capsule. Slowly, the steam drifted away to reveal Infinite laying down, and still with his mask on. The phantom ruby glowed brilliantly, increasing in intensity, so much that Gadget took a step back, dazed. Cold sweat shook Gadget, and he tried to find a weapon,  _any_ sort of weapon.

Tails' hands dropped from the capsule, shaking.

He grabbed Gadget's wrist, hurling him across the room. Caught off guard, Gadget was slung to the other side, slamming into the wall. He let out an almost comical  _oof_ noise, trying to work out what was going on through lowered eyelids. Tails frantically dashed around the room, lowering various knobs, turning on switches, and tapping a computer in the corner. But, despite the various straps that held Infinite back, he floated upwards, seemingly without any effort.

"Hello."

Tails gawked up at him, tails twisting around each other in fright. Gadget understood why Tails had flung him away now.

He was trying to protect him.

Infinite's golden eye inspected the fox in front of him, apparently not noticing Gadget. He dropped down to the ground gracefully, outstretching his arms. 

Gadget tentatively clutched his wrist, stepping silently to avoid Infinite's line of sight. He noticed Tails reaching behind him for something - a wrench. 

"I let you live." Infinite's voice sent ripples through their minds, assuming control and power of their thoughts. He didn't know it, but two pairs of eyes were trained on him. "In the city." He cocked his head to one side, appearing as though he was debating with himself quietly. "And in Green Hill. I _knew_ you were there. And..." His hand reached out to touch Tails' shoulder, but the fox took an instinctive step back, fearful. "Yet... This is what happens to me. The frail overthrow the powerful. Ha. Unheard of. Simply impossible. Not unless you cheated."

This was the  _thing_ that had supposedly killed Sonic in front of Tails', the  _thing_ that had an iron grip over the world, the  _thing_ that hurt so many, killed so many, and here it was, staring at him, scrutinising him, challenging him. And, well, Dark Gaia be damned if Tails wasn't going to take up this challenge. He knew what Sonic would do in such a situation, and he wasn't going to let himself fail again.

"I don't cheat," Tails said slowly, waving the wrench in front of him. Infinite's gaze was fixed on the wrench, not noticing Tails' frantic tapping on the computer behind him. "I learn from my mistakes."

"Ugh," Infinite fixed his mask, phantom ruby growing ever brighter. "This again. That rat said the same."

"I'm not going to let you win again," A determined frown took over Tails' features, and he gripped the wrench tighter, waving it like a pendulum. "I'm not going to let you hurt my friends again!"

"I suggest you worry about yourself first," Infinite purred. He tapped a foot forward, Tails moving back, and they kept moving back until Tails' back was pressed against the keyboard of the computer. "Well? Where did all your bravado go? Too scared?" Infinite's voice grew increasingly excited with every word, the phantom ruby's aura blazing bright.

"I'll show you," Tails mumbled. "I'll show you for hurting my friends!" Electric currents rippled through the floor where Infinite was standing, and the electricity grasped him, choking Infinite and dropping him to the floor. In the split second that Infinite was distracted by pain, Tails gestured Gadget over to the cupboard from earlier, but then stood upright and determined when Infinite regained his posture.

"Is that all?" His voice wavered slightly. "That was  _nothing_."

Despite Infinite pretending that he suffered no pain, it clearly had an impact on him. Tails was about to turn around to face the computer, but Infinite gripped his wrists, pulling them above his head.

"Mint." Tails said. "I want... mints."

"How odd." Infinite tilted his head. "A safe word." He decided eventually, yanking Tails away from the computer. "I'm not falling for your tricks."

"Mint." Tails repeated. "Mint."

"Hm," Infinite floated in the air, summoning cubes using the phantom ruby's illusion magic. "I recall the Doctor saying you were  _intelligent_." He gazed down at the floor, as if trying to locate hidden weaponry.

"Mint candy." An all too familiar voice sounded behind Infinite, and before he could even register  _who_ it was, or what the hell had just happened, the cold barrel of a gun was thrust against the back of his head.

Tails swiftly flew over Infinite, letting out a sigh of relief. "I-It took you too long to figure out the safe word!"

Gadget, for once, let a wide canine-showing grin. "I had to be sure."

Infinite growled, hands curling into fists. "You."

"Don't move." Gadget warned, finally regaining his confidence. "If you move, I  _will_ blow your brains out."

Fortunately, Infinite complied wordlessly, and the cubes dissipated.

"How did that even happen?" Gadget stared at the back of Infinite's head. "How did he escape?"

Tails tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Hm..." He was about to continue, but they both jumped when Infinite unexpectedly crashed onto the floor, knocked out.

"Was he that scared?" Gadget glanced up at Tails.

"I think it's because of fatigue..." Tails answered. "I think..."

"What?"

"Never mind. My machines must have malfunctioned."

Gadget pulled Infinite over his shoulder, sighing. "Alright."

* * *

In a short space of time, Tails had called everyone back in to monitor Infinite. Knuckles was convinced that Infinite was still awake and only planning to attack them when they were vulnerable.

"Are you okay?" Amy wouldn't let go of both Tails and Gadget until they had both mumbled a 'yes'. Tails yanked his arm free, watching them.

Sonic patted Tails' shoulder. "I knew you could do it, buddy. Even though, well, I wasn't here so..." Tails knew that Sonic's babbling was out of nervousness. And the truth was, he was nervous too.

Knuckles and Gadget yawned simultaneously, and Amy gripped her hammer, standing over Infinite who was now laying back down inside his capsule, but still right in front of Gadget's cocked Void Wispon and Amy's hard stare.

"So... How about we get rid of that phantom ruby already?" Knuckles turned to Tails, who also turned to Sonic.

"I need a moment," Tails' eyes pleaded with Sonic.

"Sure," Sonic stood up. "Just a moment."

As soon as they left the room, Tails shook his head. "I can't... I can't do that. I can't... operate on something organic."

"You don't have to," Sonic shrugged.

Tails' arm clutched his upper arm and he gazed down sadly. "I don't know what to do. I'm... I'm weighing the whole team down. When he defeated you, I couldn't do anything but watch. I still..."

"It's not your fault." Sonic said softly. "Hey. I still believe in you. You've done many great things in the past. Tails, you're not just someone I hang around with for fun. You're my best friend because you're strong, and I really admire you for that."

Tails paused, wordless. But then, he looked up at Sonic, smiling. "Thank you, Sonic... I-I think I have an idea! If I reverse the Chaos Emerald's power to block the phantom ruby, and then it'll be rendered useless and-"

"Woah, woah, slow down, buddy," Sonic grinned, lifting his hands up. "I'm sure you can do all that. For now, though, we need a plan on what to do with Infinite."

Tails nodded, and reopened the door. Everyone's eyes followed Tails, awaiting a response.

"We need to relocate him," Tails announced. "We can't keep him here."

"If we keep him in base any longer he might destroy it." Sonic added.

"So we need to keep him with someone responsible." Knuckles announced. "Alright, who volunteers?"

They all glanced around at each other until Amy spoke up. "Maybe we should have a specialised research unit."

"We don't have enough time to build one." Tails argued.

"I'll take him." Adjusting his glasses, Gadget looked at Knuckles tiredly.

Knuckles opened his mouth to argue, but then paused, thinking, and then spoke again. "Yeah. Sure. Why not. Tails, fit in a security measure and plan in the rookie's apartment."

"No way!" Amy shook her head, swinging her hammer to and fro dangerously. "There's no way I'm letting  _him_ stay with Gadget! Are you crazy?"

"Amy, it's okay." Gadget's voice was tired and hurried. "Let's just get this over and done with."

The pink hedgehog lowered her hammer, looking as though she was on the verge of tears. "Fine. But. On  _one_ condition. I'm staying over."

Knuckles glanced at Gadget, waiting for his approval. The wolf simply nodded and shrugged, yawning.

"Tails, get to work on installing a security system in Gadget's apartment." Knuckles ordered, cracking the joints in his fingers. "How many troops do you need?"

"Half of the medical and engineering unit." Tails responded, peering over Infinite. "And maybe we'll place some guards around Gadget's apartment. Who knows what could happen..."

"Either way, it's better than keeping him here." Knuckles nodded. "Alright. Let's get to work."

* * *

When people are asleep, one would expect them to look peaceful, or even angelic.

However, as Gadget gazed over Infinite's mask, he was reminded of a beautiful God of destruction.

It almost felt creepy watching his sworn enemy, but he knew that if Infinite got the chance, he'd do the same. And probably murder him, too.

The alarm clock beside him beeped for 3 am, and Amy jolted awake, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. "Okay, my turn to stay at watch now."

"Yeah, okay," Gadget lay down in the guest mattress he had lay down in his bedroom, watching Amy tiredly slump into the chair next to his bed. "There's a lamp next to my bed, by the way."

Amy flicked the switch but said nothing. Closing his eyes, Gadget willed himself to sleep.

Still, two questions lingered in his mind and he couldn't sleep, staying awake until the next alarm.

Who was Infinite?

And how would he strike next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if any characters are ooc, feel free to tell me or point out any flaws in my writing!! thank you for reading!
> 
> p.s. tails likes mint candy


	3. fist bump

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> all my chapter got deleted last time i tried to write, so not only did i lose my chapter, but i lost my motivation to write, and the will to live  
> but!!!!!! i decided that i had to get back into writing and stop moping around sooooooooo here it is and enjoy infinite being petty

"You're finally awake."

This was... different. Infinite hadn't expected  _Gadget_ to look down on  _him_ with utter contempt, and to have such a flat and bored face. Somehow, Gadget sensed that Infinite was bewildered, so he abruptly stood up from the chair next to the bed, and pulled the curtains back. It took Infinite a few seconds to readjust to the area he was in, and it took him even more time to notice that the pink one was sleeping on the floor.

"What's this?" His voice had a touch of amusement. "A sleepover?"

Gadget turned his head around to face Infinite, annoyed. "No. It's a party, and you're the clown."

Infinite  _flinched_. Gadget blinked twice, obviously surprised, and Infinite covered his mask with his hands.

"Enough."

Infinite noticed Gadget watching him cautiously, edging his way around the bedroom. He stayed silent, reaching out for his glasses and gloves and slipped them on.

That damned hedgehog.

_Your mask can't hide just how sad and lonely you are._

Sad? Him? Infinite?  _Lonely?_ No. He was perfectly able all by himself, perfectly fine, perfectly healthy-

The gashes on his arms proved differently, however. The cut on his head, his broken tail, and that distant buzzing in his ears. He sat up, despite it all, his neck clicking from the awkward position he was asleep in. "Where am I?"

"In my bedroom." Gadget sat back down on the rocking chair, eyeing Infinite. "There's no point in trying to escape, by the way."

Infinite clicked his neck, and stiffly fixed his mask. "Well. Isn't that obvious? Would you  _really_ expect me in this state," He gestured to himself, highlighting his injuries and wounds, "To make my way out of here?"

"You do realise that I don't trust a thing of what you say?"

"Good to know." Infinite muttered, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. In the corner of his eye, he noticed that the pink hedgehog had woken up, and was now hesitantly staring at him. His finger lightly touched his dry and scratchy throat, and he coughed, being careful not to instinctively look back at either of his captors.

"I'm guessing you haven't had food or drink in ages..." The pink hedgehog said, and Infinite couldn't help but grimace from the touch of sympathy her voice had. Gross. It wasn't like as if he was some poor, pitiful, and weak creature that they had to nurse and help. He was Infinite... A powerful entity, and had been chosen by the holy phantom ruby.

Except... he wasn't infinite. He had almost died, hadn't he? If he had stayed in the fortress any longer... Had he have slept again without help...

It would have been his last sleep.

"Come on." Gadget, the boy that had once been defeated, but soon defeated him, called. "What do you want for breakfast?" While Infinite was focusing on his thoughts, both the pink girl and Gadget had made their way over to the door. The girl was looking at Infinite with worry.

"Breakfast?" Infinite uttered, as if it was a new word. "Why would I..."

"Do you want anything for breakfast?"

"I don't eat."

Gadget looked Infinite up and down. "That explains a lot."

"No, you don't understand-" He stopped. The wolf wasn't listening anymore.

The pink hedgehog beckoned him through a small hallway and into a tiny living room. She almost immediately sat down on the sofa- clearly she was exhausted. Usually, Infinite would've stayed standing as it would indicate that the power in the room shifted to him, but he... Really couldn't be bothered to uphold his reputation for the time being, and he was just, really,  _really_ tired. He chose the spot farthest away from the girl.

And this spot was warm. Infinite slowly closed his eyes. Even though he had just slept, it wouldn't hurt to take a quick nap. Besides, the sofa was just like Gadget's bed. Comfy, soft, and it felt like... It felt like...

Before the word  _embrace_ drifted into his mind, Gadget's words woke him up once again. "Here." A plate of pancakes was placed in front of him on the shiny brown table. "You can take a bath later, or shower, or whatever you prefer."

"I told you that I don't eat." Infinite declared defiantly, and Gadget rolled his eyes, pushing the pancakes towards him.

"If you don't eat, I'll force feed you."

Cheeks flaring from embarrassment, Infinite shoved food into his mouth. "I'm," he ate more, ravenously finishing the food. "Not a child."

"We're just trying to help!" The girl crossed her arms. 

"I can make more, if you want." Gadget offered, but Infinite shook his head. "Okay..." He glanced to the hedgehog. "Should I explain...?"

"I'll do it," the girl nodded, and Infinite felt even more out of place than what he already did. "So. We're basically placing you under house arrest for the next... Few years? Decades? It depends on how quickly you stop acting like this."

"D-Decades?" He asked, disbelieving.

"Yeah." Gadget glanced over to the girl. "I'm... I'm Gadget." He reached out for a hand shake, his hand visibly trembling. Infinite swallowed the lump in his throat. No way. He couldn't have been reduced to... this.

Eventually, he grasped Gadget's hand tightly, digging his nails into the boy's gloved hand. Infinite was powerful. Infinite was better. Infinite was...

"I'm Amy Rose." He tore his hand away from Gadget's and looked at her in the eye, his stomach tumbling. "I'll be checking in every now and then. Think of me as your therapist. Or..." She tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"My rehabilitator." Infinite spat, standing up. "I am Infinite. I am not-"

"Hush," she reached out and suddenly held his hands, silencing him immediately. "You'll be okay. We're just trying to help. We want to help everyone, okay? Even if..."

"Even if you destroyed and killed so many." Gadget whispered. Infinite yanked his hands away from Amy's, and was about to interject, when Amy hushed him again.

"Let's start with team building exercises!" She pointed to a stack of plastic cups in the corner. "Such as... Building a tower! We all need this."

"Amy, I don't think-" Gadget started but Amy shook her head, standing up.

"Doing normal things like this will help us to understand each other more." Amy beckoned them over to the floor as she sat on it, picking up a few plastic cups. "Unless you'd rather have a group venting session?"

Infinite stayed silent. He clenched his fists, but then tentatively clutched a cup.

"Great!" Amy gave them both a small smile. "So you put the cups down like this..."

* * *

 

So this was his plan:

  1. Gain their trust. Especially Gadget. Amy seemed to be gullible.
  2. Recover while they were looking after him.
  3. Convince them to let him out. This involved looking pitiful, which he absolutely despised, but... It would be worth it.
  4. Revenge.



And then, he would rise to power, once again, and he would prove himself not to be weak.

* * *

 

"You can go clean yourself up, if you want."

After an inane hour of balancing cups on top of each other, Infinite finally perked up at the thought of being by himself. He shakily stood up, trying to regain his balance. He followed Gadget into a small bathroom, and studied himself in the mirror.

"The towels are here," Gadget pointed to a rack. "And you can use my shampoo. Do you need anything?"

Infinite didn't say anything. He simply crossed his arms, waiting for Gadget to leave.

"...We're trying our best," Gadget held the knob on the door, twisting it open. "And you have to, as well."

"I will," Infinite said. "Try." He added. This was too easy.

Gadget left wordlessly. Infinite locked the door, and took off his mask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter is going to be more action-filled!! and will introduce other characters


	4. moonlight battlefield

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> escape  
> ɪˈskeɪp,ɛˈskeɪp  
> verb  
> 1.  
> break free from confinement or control.  
> 2.  
> a form of temporary distraction from reality or routine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> infinite's thoughts are scattered.

_I am undefeated._

_I am not weak._

_I am not weak._

_I am not weak._

_I am..._

_A failure._

* * *

 

Wouldn't it feel nice, just to drop down this never-ending cliff? The _infinite_ whisping clouds invited him down, and he could see the  _infinite_ sea stretching out, and behind him was the  _infinite_ grassland, with an  _infinite_ amount of trees. He could jump off, or stay standing, or do nothing, or...

This was greenhill.

It was so very infinite.

And so very comforting, as Infinite sat down, admiring it in all its infinity. And so empty. The gentle breeze billowing his fur, and it was a breath of fresh air, away from the pain, away from the anger, away from...

He touched his chest. It wasn't there.

He lay back and stared up at the infinite sky.

He would stay here, forever. For all of infinity.

 

* * *

 

 The sky phased into Gadget's white ceiling.

"I wish you stayed in null space."

Was that Gadget standing in the corner? He didn't want to look. He didn't want to face him.

Gadget didn't reply.

"I wish you could've died."

He tried to raise his voice, anything to get the wolf's attention. He wanted to annoy him. He wanted to see him in pain, crying out, wishing for death, like he had made him when he had defeated him with that blue rat.

He wanted to see his almost angelic features twist in anger, and he wanted to make him realise what a mistake he had made to bring him in. He would pay. He would pay.

"I wish I hadn't let you free."

_Back in the city..._

"Are you listening?" He was shouting now, snarling. "I'll kill you all!"

He went quiet. The thing in the corner was a clothes hanger. Gadget hadn't been standing there all along.

 

* * *

 

_"Does anyone but you believe your lies?"_

_It was easy. Stand still, wait for the grey hedgehog to attack, and then, with even less energy than a flick of his wrist, knock him back._

_Simple._

_But..._

_What was he talking about?_

_What lies?_

* * *

 

 

"Infinite?"

Sweat dripped from him, his fur was soaked, his chest rising and falling in rapid succession, and his claws ripped into the bed sheets, shoulders aching, legs shaking, and he stared right through Gadget, wondering where the voice was coming from.

"What happened to you?"

Eyes dilating, his chest burning, it was  _burning_ , burning, burning, and he bit down on the bed sheets, but Gadget grabbed his hands suddenly, and held them tightly, trying to get him out of the bed. But now his hands were burning too, burning like the bluest flame, but the rest of him felt icy cold, and he swung his claws across Gadget's arm, his chest heaving. It was heavy. It had the phantom ruby. Gadget's eyes were staring at it, not at the blood gushing out of his arm, not at the shredded mess his bed sheets had become.

"Stop," Infinite spoke then, arms hastily covering it. "It's mine. It's mine!"

That familiar feeling of drowning overtook him. The phantom ruby had been activated.

They were both floating, Infinite desperately trying to push Gadget away, and Gadget simply trying to regain his balance and he looked like he was about to pass out-

The phantom ruby's humming and magic stopped. They both dropped onto Gadget's bed.

Shock registered on Gadget's face and he seemed to finally notice the bleeding from his arm. He clutched it tightly and left.

 

* * *

 

 

He was on the ground, clutching the remains of Gadget's blanket.

_Worthless. Don't show your pathetic face around me ever again._

Where was his squad?

He heard footsteps and his ears perked. But then he saw the red boots and brown ones that trailed closely behind. Gadget was back.

"We're going outside." The girl - Amy - said. "And you're going to behave."

He began to feel a headache grow from her grating voice.

 

* * *

 

 

His arm was held tightly, and he was pushed through a spectrum of colours and people, so many people, all staring at him, all pointing guns. There were two guards on either side, dragging Infinite across the concrete and around the rubble.

"We're going to Mystic Jungle."

There was yelling, and thrashing, and suddenly someone's arms flailed, and someone growled. The grips on his arms grew ever-tighter, and he realised that the flailing and growling was coming from him.

"...should go with him..." Broken pieces of conversation drifted into his ears. That was Gadget's voice.

"...too dangerous... Can't leave him by himself!" It was the girl.

He was pushed into a car. Amy and Gadget came in either side of him, and the driver, a beige-coloured cat, was already sitting down and clutching the steering wheel.

"Really?" He huffed, suddenly straightening up, an eye inspecting the interior. "We're going to Mystic Jungle in  _this_ contraption? I assumed we were going in something a little more... extravagant."

Gadget put on his seat belt. "It's a car, Infinite."

"And you're heroes. Doesn't that fox boy build better vehicles?"

Amy glared at him. "Just because we save the world every week doesn't mean that we deserve to be paraded around."

Something was digging into Infinite's rib. It was the seat belt. He pushed it away from himself and towards Amy, lifting his head up contemptuously. "But, don't you require some sort of defense system? Something more complex?"

"We fight with what we have. Besides, Tails is busy with rebuilding areas of the city that _you_ destroyed." Amy elbowed the seat belt back towards Infinite.

"Infinite, put on your seat belt." Gadget was looking out of the window, and the car began to move.

Infinite snarled, but put on his seat belt. "You're underestimating us."

"Us?" Gadget rested his chin on the palm of his hand, bored-looking. "You and Eggman? It's over, Infinite. You've lost."

Infinite swallowed down the angry statements he was going to make. He had to gain their trust, not further widen the gap between them.

"Eggman is still out there." He said.

Gadget hummed, and began tapping the car's window ledge. "We'll get him, too."

There was no use arguing with him, so, for the rest of the ride, Infinite stayed silent.

 

* * *

 

 

Infinite assumed that when they'd arrive, he'd be torn through a crowd of guards and soldiers once again. But once the car stopped, he was simply ushered out, following Amy.

Either this was a trap and everything here was fool-proof, or they thought that he was practically harmless. Which he very much wasn't, was what he  _wanted_ to say and show, but...

It wasn't that he  _couldn't_ fight back, it was just that...

Yes, he was simply biding his time. That was all.

Still, he couldn't help but feel uneasy at the fact that the young wolf ( _his name is Gadget_ , Infinite reminded himself), in the space of a few months, had grown from an easily defeated weakling to a mighty foe. But then again, he had the blue hedgehog on his side.

He wondered whether the jungle had changed or not. Other than a few fallen over trees, it seemed mostly the same. Oh, and the piles of broken robots.

"Why am I here?" He asked pointedly, crossing his arms. Amy's hammer appeared in her hands, and she clutched it tightly.

"We're going to assess the damage done here," she began, but then paused. She looked over to Gadget, expecting him to continue for her.

"Oh, um, and then you're going to clean up," Gadget hurried, testing his Lightning Wispon on a nearby tree. Infinite finally noticed the bandages wrapped around Gadget's wound. "But we're going to need you to take off your mask."

"My mask?" His voice sounded incredulous. "Why would you need my mask?"

"You're one of the most recognizable people in the world now," Gadget shrugged. "Congratulations." He added.

Infinite clutched his fists. He didn't remember him being so... _snarky_ before.

"So?"

"So," Amy elongated the 'o', her hands facing outwards on her hips as she leaned forward, an annoyed expression on her face, "You need to take it off or you'll get killed."

He snorted. "If they want to kill me, they have a death wish."

"No, seriously, you're in serious danger." Gadget stared right into Infinite's eye, and Infinite took a step back. "If anyone sees you out here..."

"They can try me." Infinite replied, tone hard. Amy and Gadget exchanged glances.

"At least it looks like there's no one around." Gadget said right before Eggman and his entire army of robots flew in from behind a series of trees.

"Oh."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pls put ur seatbelts on like gadget- he's a good boy and a law-abiding citizen  
> oh yeah also realised that i had to have a transition chapter between The Action so i just decided to show The Happenings in infinite's mind. i hope u liked it.


End file.
